With respect to the object of innovation, the Oslo Manual distinguishes four types of innovation: product, process, marketing and organizational innovation.

• Product innovation: the creation of goods or services that are new or significantly improved with respect to their features or use. Significant improvement needs to be carried out in the technical specification, or in the components and materials, linked software, user-friendly applications or in other important features. Examples can be the development of the MP3 player, or the GPS.
• Process innovation: the development of a new or significantly improved production or supply process. This means an important technical modification in techniques, technologies, equipment and/or software (for example, the introducing of a QR code tracking system).
• Marketing innovation: implementing such a new marketing method that brings significant changes in the design, packaging, positioning, advertising of a product or in the pricing. Marketing innovation is aimed at positioning the products/services in a new way, opening new markets or meeting the customer demands better. It needs to contain an element that differs significantly from the earlier marketing methods (e.g. the opening of a web-shop).
• Organizational innovation means the implementation of new organizational methods in the daily business practices, in work organisation or in external connections, e.g. introducing a new training system, or a new quality management system.